NCCFMRC

North Carolina Citizens for Felony Murder Rule
Change

The Felony Murder RuleThis is
North Carolina's current homicide law.
The Felony Murder Rule is in bold text.

SUBCHAPTER III. OFFENSES AGAINST THE PERSON
Homicide

§ 14-17.
Murder in the first and second degree defined; punishment.

A murder which shall be perpetrated by means of poison,
lying in wait, imprisonment, starving, torture, or by any
other kind of willful, deliberate, and premeditated
killing,
or which shall be committed in the perpetration or
attempted perpetration of any arson, rape or a sex offense,
robbery, kidnapping, burglary, or other felony committed or
attempted with the use of a deadly weapon shall be deemed
to be murder in the first degree, a Class A felony, and any
person who commits such murder shall be punished with death
or imprisonment in the State's prison for life without
paroleas the
court shall determine pursuant to G.S. 15A-2000, except
that any such person who was under 17 years of age at the
time of the murder shall be punished with imprisonment in
the State's prison for life without parole. Provided,
however, any person under the age of 17 who commits murder
in the first degree while serving a prison sentence imposed
for a prior murder or while on escape from a prison
sentence imposed for a prior murder shall be punished with
death or imprisonment in the State's prison for life
without parole as the court shall determine pursuant to
G.S. 15A-2000. All other kinds of murder, including that
which shall be proximately caused by the unlawful
distribution of opium or any synthetic or natural salt,
compound, derivative, or preparation of opium, or cocaine
or other substance described in G.S. 90-90(1)d., when the
ingestion of such substance causes the death of the user,
shall be deemed murder in the second degree, and any person
who commits such murder shall be punished as a Class B2
felon. (1893, cc. 85, 281; Rev., s. 3631; C.S., s. 4200;
1949, c. 299, s. 1; 1973, c. 1201, s. 1; 1977, c. 406, s.
1; 1979, c. 682, s. 6; 1979, c. 760, s. 5; 1979, 2nd Sess.,
c. 1251, ss. 1, 2; 1981, c. 662, s. 1; 1987, c. 693; 1989,
c. 694; 1993, c. 539, s. 112; 1994, Ex. Sess., c. 21, s. 1;
c. 22, s. 4; c. 24, s. 14(c); 1997-456, s. 27.)